The Eastern Finland Court of Appeal has ruled that a Nigerian woman and her two children must be released from the Joutseno detention centre, where they had been held for nearly two months following the rejection of their asylum claim.
The woman, Mary and her children, aged two and six, will now be moved to the nearby Joutseno open reception centre while their second application for asylum is processed.
The Finnish media reported last week that the court stated that the legal conditions for keeping the children in detention had not been met.
It also ruled that separating the children from their mother would not have served their best interests.
Finnish law states that detention of children is only permitted as a last resort and for the shortest possible period.
The ruling overturns an earlier decision by a lower court that extended the family’s detention.
The family will now move to the Joutseno open reception centre while their re-application for asylum is to be processed.
According to reports, the 27-year-old woman initially travelled from Nigeria to Italy in search of a better life.
However, she ended up as a s3x worker and fled to Finland last year to escape her violent husband.
She applied for asylum in Finland but her application was immediately rejected on the grounds that she had already received a residence permit in Italy.
In her last application to the Finnish authorities, the woman did not mention that she had been a victim of human trafficking.
The family’s legal advisor, attorney Emmi Wehka-aho, confirmed that a second application has now been submitted to the Finnish Immigration Service Migri – with a decision likely in the next couple of weeks.
“I am happy with the Court of Appeal’s decision, which considered the matter from the children’s point of view. The obligation to sign in, on the other hand, is unreasonable,” the lawyer said.
She added that the family would like to stay in Finland, and specifically in Pori, where they have previously lived and have built a support network.
